Beginings
by dana1313
Summary: When the police aren't able to keep up with crime in Jump City, a new team is formed-Even while the government is taking steps to actively limit Meta rights. For one half-demon, keeping her life from spiraling out of control is a lot harder then it seems.
1. Prologue

**Hello, everyone—It's been a while since I last posted anything, I know, but I think this one has some potential. I'm thinking about making a multi-chapter piece, something I haven't attempted in years, but I don't know if I have the ability to keep with something for more than a few updates… ;_;;  
If you like this prologue, please drop me a line (read: Review), and if you feel as if it's over done feel free to let me know. Any suggestions would be great, as well. Thanks for reading,  
Dana  
~~-~~**

She grimaced, setting her mug down with a soft tap onto the counter top. Her throat was raw, probably from spending so much time outside in the rain the other day.

But she couldn't help it; her apartment was in a bad area, and there was always trouble at the worst possible times. Why couldn't people cause problems on a nice spring night? Why did it always have to be when the weather couldn't possibly get worse?

She tried to sigh, but it came out ragged—she was tired and sick and all she wanted was to go to bed…but she couldn't. She needed to find a job, and her past attempts had been… fruitless, at best… Laughable at worst.

She figured it couldn't be helped, though, all things considered. Her looks stood out, and during this tumultuous time, with so many metas being subjugated to public scrutiny, no one was willing to hire someone who didn't look obviously human. She opened the paper that had been neatly folded next to her cup, skimming the help wanted section, before closing it once more. No use rehashing the same ads again; she'd pick up the new paper in the morning, and start over… And maybe buy some cold medicine, if she could afford it.

A loud bang could be heard from the street, and she rubbed the bridge of her nose, wondering what had happened this time, and if she'd have to interfere for the third time this week. The cursing from outside her window told her yes, and she stood up, drawing the hood to her sweatshirt up over her face before walking out the door, her thoughts straying to the question that had been plaguing her for months—'Where are the police?'


	2. Chapter 1

**If you're reading this, then I thank you for clicking on this story despite the small word count. I'm not good at drawing things out, so I'm trying to end each chapter where I feel it should, as opposed to ending it where I think it **_**could**_**. This means that my chapters might never be long, but they'll be detailed and, hopefully, flow correctly.  
In any case, I'm worried that Raven is slightly OOC, so if anyone has any thoughts on the matter, feel free to let me know. Thanks for reading.**

**xXx**

Violet eyes stared back at her from the mirror, watching as the brown dye flaked off her hair and into the sink. It was her fifth attempt at keeping color in her hair, and it, much like the other four tries, had failed. Purple peaked through from the areas the dye had vacated, and she grimaced at her reflection.

The T.V in the other room, one that was hardly ever used but served as a decent background noise to cover the shouts from the adjacent apartment, was set to the news and the caster was talking about how crime rates had been soaring.

She scoffed—preaching to the choir, as usual. Her voice had finally returned about two days ago, but it was still rough around the edges. She stuck her head in the shower and sprayed the rest of the flaking dye out, before heading into the kitchen to make some tea. The newscaster mentioned something about Batman, but she couldn't care enough to be bothered with it, and switched it off as she walked past. Even screaming was better than current events.

xXx

She crossed another listing off the page, and continued walking down the street. Most people that refused to employ her honestly felt badly about it—giving her sympathetic looks and radiating guilt; she found it hard to be mad with them, even when they chose not to hire her based on her looks. There were others, however, that baited her and treated her as if she were a villain or worse, making a show out of humiliating her to the customers in the store. She soon found that she couldn't stay mad at them, either, but for different reasons.  
She sighed, looked at the address for the next listing and considered just using the pay phone on the corner to call ahead of time, though she knew that it usually made little difference. Once they saw her, they refused to interview, even if she'd been promised a chance.  
The area she was in was better than the area she lived, but only slightly. You could tell the shop owners cared about their store fronts, but the large metal grates that kept the windows covered showed that they were also afraid of the people they catered to. The alleys were most certainly grungy, and the sidewalks could use a good power washing, but it was still cleaner than the place she called home.

As she made her way to the corner, where the light was still set to 'don't cross', she sighed, glancing briefly at the people she was passing—most of them looked obviously human, which doesn't necessarily mean that they weren't meta, of course, but she noticed that the ones that looked different, herself included, were given wide berth. She ended up reaching the corner as the pedestrian light changed to 'walk', but she paused, asking herself if she should even bother going to the next stop on her list—her pause saved her life, however, as a car went careening through the group that had been trying to cross. It stalled for a second, as if the driver was shocked at what had happened, before speeding off, down the street and around a corner.

She stood in place, shocked and horrified, as the people that had been hit moaned on the side of the street, unable to move from where they lay. The worst of them seemed to be a small child, around the age of seven—the fear and pain she could feel coming off the people nearest to her was almost suffocating, but she made her way over to the child, since he took priority, and placed her hands on the most grievous of the injuries. Blue light filtered out and into the wound, healing it before any substantial blood loss could be had. She looked him over once more, decided that he was no longer in immediate danger, and moved onto the next. Then the next; the fourth and last victim, however, had died, presumably on impact, his neck turned horribly to one side, eyes open and unseeing, staring at the direction the car had gone. She closed her eyes and took a deep, shuddering breath, before making her way back to the other victims, healing what else she could.

She wouldn't be able to track that car, its generic build and color making it difficult to find under even perfect circumstances. She punched the asphalt, once, twice, and finally a third time, wincing when her knuckles split. She had seen a pedestrian call 911 over ten minutes ago—where were they? What were they waiting for?

She calmed herself, the last thing she needed was to add to this scene and with the victims finally becoming responsive, and she had to start leaving. The boy tugged on her sleeve, however, and mumbled a thank you, and she forced a smile at him, if only because she'd have cried otherwise.

As she hurried from the area, the onlookers whispering to themselves about what had happened, a shadowed figure frowned from his hidden position on the roof across the street.

It was time to get to work.


	3. Chapter 2

Richard Grayson was lucky.  
He realized this as he stalked through the shadows, jumping from rooftop to rooftop.  
The Girl, aptly named because he had yet to learn her name, was not.  
After healing the victims of a hit-and-run, she was tracked down by the meta-police.  
It was funny, in a twisted way. The police that showed up weren't for the pedestrians, they were for their savior.  
She didn't try to run; instead, she stopped on the sidewalk and let them handcuff her.  
They were not gentle about it.  
No rights were read. No one bothered to read rights to Metas anymore.

Richard Grayon was lucky.

He was human.


	4. Chapter 3

She hadn't moved in hours.  
She sat quietly on her cot, which smelled like stale urine and unwashed bodied, her eyes closed, as she counted quietly from one to one thousand and back down again.  
491. 492. 493.

"Ms. Roth." The name was spat out, like the taste of it sickened the officer.  
She opened one eye.  
"Yes?"  
"Someone payed your bail. You're...Free to go."  
He sounded even less happy about this than he did about saying her name, but she stood dutifully as he opened the door and stepped out. He slammed  
the grating shut again, obviously angry.  
"It's bad enough we had to give you your own cell, now I find out you're pals with Grayson? We'll be watching you, Ms. Roth. Slip up again and it won't be  
a cozy room with a cot you'll be getting."  
She didn't respond. Just walked forward into the waiting area, trying to remember where she'd heard the name "Grayson" before.

~X~

"Ms. Roth?"  
She looked up sharply, having just received her registration. In a move that didn't go unnoticed, she quickly slid it into her pocket, where it couldn't be seen.

"Yes?"  
"Hi, my name is Richard Grayson- I was wondering if we could get a cup of coffee and talk?"  
She leveled a glare at him that would stop the most hardened criminal in their tracks.  
He felt good about this already.  
"Do I know you?"  
"No, Ma'am," Another glare, "Miss. But I know you. Or, about you. I saw what you did before."  
Her eyes widened almost imperceptibly.  
"You mean how I attacked those innocents?" She tried to keep it out of her voice, but he could tell she was hurt.  
"No, I mean how you saved them."  
She walked past him, stiffly. Her shoulder brushed past his and he felt it's cold through his shirt.  
"I appreciate what you've done for me, but I think I'm just going to go home."  
"That's a little rude, isn't it?"  
He smirked to himself as she stopped short then spun on her heel.  
"Excuse me?"  
"Well, Ms. Roth, didn't I just get you out of jail? The least you can do is have a cup of coffee with me."

~X~

He was uncomfortable. She could tell.  
Not that she particularly cared. She was the reason for it, after all.  
They'd been sitting in the cafe for a while now, close to half an hour, at least, but she refused to speak unless spoken to.  
It wasn't that she thought he was a bad guy- In fact, she knew that he was a very good guy- but the stress of almost being killed, then healing all those injuries,  
then being imprisoned...And now the looks she was getting from the patrons and staff made her uneasy, tired and cranky.

So why would she make it easy for him? This guy who had life handed to him. Who can walk into a cafe and order a drink without being thrown out or glared at.

"So.. Ms. Roth."  
"Yes?"  
He sighed, running a hand through his styled black hair.  
"I think I should just skip the niceties, they don't seem to be working, anyway, and just cut to the chase."  
"And what exactly, Mr. Grayson, is the chase?"  
"Richard."  
"Richard." She conceded  
"See, Ms. Roth- Raven?"  
"Ms. Roth is fine."  
"Right.. The thing is, I don't believe in Meta-Registration. I don't believe in you being guilty by default. There's no reason to believe that all Metas are criminals,  
just like not all humans are criminals."  
"Give the man a prize," she sneered, "I bet you have Meta friends, too?"  
"Ms. Roth, please, just let me finish, I-"  
"No, I think I'm done here."  
She stood, pushing her chair back under the table afterwords.  
"Wait, please, just-" he was standing, too, but she was already half-way to the door, the other people in the small building parting as she walked. "Ms. Roth!"  
He was outside, searching for her darkly clad form, finally spotting a bunch of purple and gray down the road. He caught up easily, barely picking up a jog.  
"Ms. Roth, please, just let me explain."  
"Explain what?" she whirled on him, eyes furious. "That you don't think it's 'right'? That we're being abused and mistreated? Thanks, Dick. I appreciate it."  
It took him a beat to realize that she wasn't _calling_ him a dick, but that she had shortened his name. He almost started laughing.  
"What exactly is so funny?"  
"You're the first person here to call me that- Only my mentor has every used that name for me."  
"Mentor?"  
He grinned, his mood drastically improved. "Gonna let me explain now?"  
"Fine."  
"You want to go back to the cafe?"  
"No. We'll go to my place."

~X~

He stared in disbelief at the apartment building she called home.

It was a wreck, and he was being polite by calling it that.  
"How much does this place cost?"  
She pushed her weight against the door, forcing it open with a loud creak.  
"Close to a thousand."  
"A month?"  
"Yes."  
He took stock of the room, a small kitchenette that looked broken down and grungy, a 'living area' with a filthy carpet and tattered couch and TV on an end  
table against the only window in the room. Two doors, probably leading to a bathroom and bedroom.  
Despite the look of the place, the entire apartment smelled like bleach.  
"Cleaning up a murder?" He grinned and could have sworn she almost smiled.  
"If you count "Moldicide" as murder, then yes."  
"Why does this place cost so much? Does it include utilities?"  
She scoffed, the closest he'd heard to a laugh yet. "No. This is the cheapest a Meta can get. They over price the apartments when renting to my kind."  
"Are you making the rent?"  
She didn't answer, instead putting water on the stove. The water, he noticed, was faintly yellow.  
"Should you be drinking that?"  
"Don't worry- I'm hardy. Would you like some tea? It's safe after boiling."  
"No..Thank you."  
He waited until she finished making her drink to explain what he was thinking, hoping she'd be more receptive to the idea if he didn't interrupt her.  
"I'm thinking, Ms. Roth, that we should work together."  
"Doing what, exactly?"  
"Defending the city."  
Her eyes shot to his, alarmed and...yes, he was sure of it. That was fear.  
"No."  
"What? But- I mean, you just saved those people! That little boy...Think of the good we could do!"  
"Do you know who it was that called the Meta-Police, Richard?"  
He shook his head mutely, but deep down he knew where this was going.  
"The mother of the child I saved. According to her, I was trying to kill him. I 'saw easy prey and took advantage of it'. Why would I want to save this city  
full of people who accuse the people who help them? Turn honest people away when looking for work? No, Dick. I think I'd much prefer to stay out of this city's war."  
"In case you hadn't noticed, _Ms. Roth, _you're already _in_ the war."  
"I think it would be best if you left now, Mr. Grayson."  
He stood, ready to say something biting until he noticed the faint traces of pain that etched her face.  
Maybe he'd gone too fast.  
"I'll be in touch."

The sound of the door squeaking shut wasn't nearly as much of a relief as she'd though it would be.


	5. Chapter 5

It had been two days since she last heard from Richard Grayson.  
Raven Roth had almost entirely put the encounter out of her mind- as much as she prized her ability to deal with unsavory situations, she had a more pressing one to attend to-  
finding employment.

She walked the same path she was heading down when the accident struck, hoping fervently that she could make it there without an incident this time.  
A few blocks past the corner the man had died, she came to a small store filled with books and stationary. Checking the address with the one in the ad,  
she stepped inside, a bell sounding cheerfully with the movement of the door.  
"Hello?"  
"Just a moment!" she heard a shuffling noise from behind the curtain separating what appeared to be the stock area from the rest of the store, then the  
slightly hunched figure of an elderly woman came through, pushing the fabric aside with an arthritis knotted hand.

"How may I help you?"  
Either the woman was blind or she thought her purple hair was decoration, because she didn't seem to have any issue with the Meta in her store.

"Oh, um..I'm sorry, there was a listing for a job?"  
"Ah, yes, of course, of course! Come back, please, we can talk while I make tea!"  
Raven nodded, surprised at the warmth she could feel from the woman, and followed her past the curtain and into a small sitting area with a coffee table  
and worn but comfortable looking loveseat and chair. Books lined shelves back here, as well, but these ones looked used and very old.  
"I'm just so happy someone came!" The woman continued, motioning for Raven to sit, which she did hesitatingly. "Most people look over my little store,  
you're the first to come in! I have a good feeling about you, Ms..."  
"Ah, Raven. Raven Roth." It had been a long time since Raven had a conversation with a human that didn't involve hostility, so the genuine kindness that  
radiated off this lady took her by surprise, making her ability to speak intelligently somewhat lacking.  
"That's a good name." The older woman smiled, and Raven thought to herself, taking herself off guard, that she must have been very pretty when she was  
younger. "I can see you're nervous, if you wait just a moment I can get the tea on and we can talk; maybe put you at ease?"  
Raven didn't respond, instead just nodding silently, her words failing her. She just looked down at her hands, which she hadn't realized she was wringing,  
until a cup of steaming tea was set on the table in front of her. She took it carefully, the warmth calming her fingers and giving them something to do.  
"Now, Raven," at this Raven lifted her head and was caught in the other woman's gaze, trapped.  
"Y-yes?" She cursed herself for stammering, but noticed that the woman across from her just smiled gently and sipped her own tea before continuing.  
"I'm assuming that you've been looking for a job for a long time?"  
"Ma'am?"  
The woman smiled again, just as gently as before.  
"I know what you are- that doesn't matter to me. It's been myself here for a long time- ever since my husband died a little over a year ago. My granddaughter  
stops by every once in a while to help, but I've never had an employee here that wasn't related. We don't get a lot of business here either- Normally some  
off-beat anarchists or quiet poetry types, sometimes Wiccans if I can order them the books they're looking for. I don't think you being what you are will stand out  
much more than the customers here do."  
Raven stared at her in disbelief  
"Does that mean I can have the job?"

"If you want it, it's yours."  
"Thank you!" The words were out of her mouth before she could stop herself. She turned faintly pink, eyes down again, hands turning the cup around and around in  
her palms. The old woman laughed, but kindly, like everything else about her, and patted her knee in a grandmotherly fashion.  
"Of course, my dear, of course. I just need to get your registration card. Politics, you understand."  
A shadow passed over Raven's face, but she nodded and reached for it.  
"No, no, not yet. We can finish our tea first- have you eaten? You're so skinny!"  
This time Raven was definitely blushing.  
"No, ma'am."  
"Then we'll order in- a celebration, if you will, for a new hire."  
She wanted to object, wanted to tell the woman that she didn't need to spend her money on her, but the rumbling in her stomach beat her to it.  
She paused, then, to her own shock, started laughing- it was nervous and quiet, but audible in the silence of the room. The woman, beaming, joined in the laughter.  
Raven had never felt so much at home as she did in that small bookshop.

~X~

"Did you get enough to eat?"  
"Yes, ma'am. Thank you for everything- Lunch was amazing."  
"That restaurant has been my favorite for years, they have the best Greek food in the city."  
"And for the job-"  
"Don't worry about that, dear. I needed an employee and you needed a job. Besides, this part of town isn't very good- no one will start trouble with you here, will they?"  
The old lady winked, and Raven smiled despite herself- If Grayson had said the same thing, he'd be laid out on the ground, but from this woman, it didn't sound like an insult.  
"I doubt it, ma'am."  
"Now we just need to fill out the papers- I'm going to need that card now, dear."  
"Yes, of course."  
Raven fished it out of her pocket and handed it over- The card itself was the size of a drivers license, white and blue, and contained a few very valuable pieces of information  
for the Meta-Police to use to see the potential dangers of the card holder.  
"Oh, my..."  
Raven held her breath, hoping this wasn't a deal breaker, praying to every God and Goddess she'd ever learned the name of that this place she could call home didn't fall through.  
"What class is this, exactly, dear?"  
Raven sighed, knowing that her one chance was over. She'd lost it.  
"D-Class, ma'am."  
"I thought the classes only went to C?"  
"They normally do, ma'am." She decided to continue after the woman stared at her, expecting her to finish her explanation, "The D stands for Demon. There are very few of us  
in the world, let alone the country."  
"Is this a higher class than C-level? Or is it just nominal?"  
"It's a higher class, ma'am."  
The woman read the card over, reading the powers out-loud for Raven to hear, as if she didn't know them herself.  
"Telekinesis, Empathy, portals, spell casting..."  
Raven nodded mutely, staring hard at the floor.  
"Can you do anything else?"  
"Healing, ma'am. And astral projection."  
The woman nodded, then scanned the card into her computer system before taking down the necessary information onto the work form.  
"When are you able to start?"  
Raven's head shot up, confused and terrified that this was a dream or a cruel joke.  
"I'm sorry?"  
The woman smiled again, wrinkles creasing up her eyes, making Raven feel as if she'd known her her entire life. As if this woman was her own Grandmother, someone who  
would take care of her and love her for who she was.  
"I said, when can you start? I don't believe for one moment that you're only what this card says you are. It's like saying I'm only what my license says. I'm more than 5'3"  
with brown eyes. I'm Alice. And you're Raven, not D-Class Meta. Don't forget that." The woman had somehow cupped her hand against Raven's cheek without her noticing,  
and she was about to say something when she noticed that a tear had made its way down her face. The shock of that revelation caused a small army of them to trail down  
after it, and before she knew it, she was in the embrace of the older woman, soaking her shirt and having her hair stroked lovingly.  
A few books fell off the shelves, but in the scheme of things, Raven would take a slight slip up if it meant someone caring for her after all these years.

~X~

After apologizing for close to five minutes, Alice finally managed to get Raven to go home, with the promise that she'd be starting in two days. Her first paycheck would be one  
week after that- with that knowledge she walked down the increasingly dirty sidewalks, their grunge meaning that she was getting closer to her neighborhood. A week and two  
days. That meant that she could give her landlord the first check and hopefully not get evicted. Food would have to wait until after that, and for once Raven found herself thanking  
her heritage. If she'd been anything other than a Demon, she'd be near death from lack of food, but because of it she could funnel almost all the money she'd otherwise be spending  
on sustenance to bills and rent.

Finally making her way up to her fifth floor walk up, she was about to put her key in the lock when she sensed that someone was in her apartment. She froze, concentrating briefly on  
the aura, then growled in annoyance before opening the door which was no longer locked.

"Welcome home."  
"You just break into people's homes, now?"  
"We needed to talk."  
"Doesn't give you the right to barge in here when I'm not home, Dick."

This time, Richard Grayson wasn't sure if she was calling him a dick, but decided that it wasn't really important. She could call him Susan, as long as she listened.

"It's getting worse out there."  
"It's always getting worse. You'd think they'd have hit rock bottom by now."  
"Ms. Roth, this is serious. I need your help."  
"I just got a job. I'm not gallivanting around the city, putting my name out there and getting arrested again. I _need_ this job, Grayson."  
"Do you really think I meant to do this out in the open? I deserve more credit than that."  
"Because your 'mentor' trained you better than that?"  
He didn't miss the sarcasm in that, but shrugged non-noncommittally instead of retorting. He didn't have time for banter right now.

"I have another person interested. We wouldn't be alone."  
"By 'interested' do you mean 'harassed'?"  
"Whichever works."

Raven knew that the reason Grayson annoyed her so much was because they had similar qualities. That didn't, however, mean that she was okay with him annoying her.

"Look, I'm not going to say it again. Leave me alone."  
"Not gonna happen, Raven."  
She glared at him, but sighed soon after, her posture turning to that of someone who accepted their fate.  
"Fine. Tell me about this 'team'."


	6. Chapter 6

"So, this is it?"  
If Raven sounded less than thrilled to be out in the rain in the middle of the night in the worst neighborhood in the city with the  
incorrigible Richard Grayson it was because she was.

"This is the place."  
They huddled under a flickering light and waited. And waited. And waited.

"Your guy isn't coming, is he?"  
"He'll be here."  
"We've been waiting for over an hour, Dick. He isn't coming."  
"He'll be here."  
"Well, with such a compelling argument.." Raven rolled her eyes but made no move to leave. She wasn't going to leave a human  
alone in this part of town. She took the opportunity to let her mind even out- Grayson had insisted on leaving immediately, giving  
Raven only the chance to take a brief shower and change before heading out. The walk took forty minutes and it had started to rain  
almost immediately afterwards.  
Raven took that as a sign; Grayson ignored it.

Close to fifteen minutes later, loud footsteps could be heard, snapping Raven out of her centering and not surprising her companion at all.

"Nice of you to make it, Victor."

The figure he was speaking to was hidden in the shadows of an adjacent alley and didn't respond aside from a grunt of recognition. Raven  
just stared, trying to make out the shape in the darkness.

"This is my...well, we're not exactly friends..."  
"Hostage?"  
Grayson had a mix between a grin and a snarl at that, and glared at Raven with a look that said 'politely shut the hell up, thank you.' Raven  
just smirked.  
"Teammate. Raven. Raven, this is Victor Stone."  
"Pleasure."  
Victor took a few steps forward, the sound his feet made could be compared to someone pounding an anvil.  
"I'm sure."  
Now that he was in the light, Raven could see that the reason he sounded like he was made of metal was because he _was_made of metal.  
One red eye looked her over, most likely scanning her for information, if Raven had a correct understanding of how modern computers worked.  
He reached out a hand, hesitatingly only slightly, and Raven shook it, knowing he needed to see if she saw him as a threat.

"Now that we're all properly introduced, how about we get in out of the rain and talk."  
Victor was about to say something, by the look on his face it was going to be a refusal, but a drawn out scream interrupted them and caused  
Grayson to assume what Raven could only guess was a fighting stance.  
"Move out! Find the source!" He took off running, Victor glanced at Raven exasperated, and followed. Raven took up the rear out of obligation.

~X~

"Stop! Please, just leave me alone!"  
"Now come on, love, stop screaming and give me what you owe me. I'm tired of your excuses- I'm collecting now."  
The man was dressed in basic thug attire, but something seemed off- Raven couldn't quite put her finger on it but-..  
"Freeze!" Grayson, now wearing sunglasses (in the dark and rain) was pointing a metal rod at the culprit.  
'Not going to work...' She realized this a second too late, her mouth open to warn him, but he'd already swung, the stick making contact with air.  
"Wha- oomph!" Richard was suddenly against the far wall, gasping for air as he clutched his sides.  
"Oh no you don't!" Victor this time, swinging in a wide arch, a punch that would devastate a normal opponent.  
This man wasn't normal.  
Again, the blow hit air, but the man was behind him. He tapped him on the shoulder and sent a blast of light out, shooting the cyborg up at least  
fifteen feet before letting him crash to the pavement. He groaned, and tried to sit up but his joints were locked. He would be out of the fight until  
he could repair himself.  
Grayson was up again, and threw some type of bomb at the culprit who side stepped it. The dust it kicked up from going off effectively hid the man,  
and Richard dodged his next attack on pure instinct.  
The man clapped, cockily, and grinned at his enemy.  
"Very good... You're better than I expected."  
"Who are you?" Grayson barked it like an order. He obviously was used to respect. This man would not be the one to give it.  
"That's not important. What's important is that you don't get in the way of me and my business."  
"Attacking innocent people is your business?"  
"Sometimes. Speaking of.." the man looked around, noticing Raven for the first time and smirking at her before continuing his scan of the area.  
"You scared her off."  
Richard grinned, smug. "Guess you're not collecting your money tonight."  
The man grinned back, but his was infinitely more dangerous. "I guess I'll just have to beat the debt out of you instead."  
With silence Raven didn't know the large man could posses, Victor was behind him, tapping him on the shoulder, matching the man's previous arrogance.  
He didn't turn.  
"In a minute, lad, the grownups are talking now."  
Stone shouted and pulled his arm back, obviously planning on throwing another punch. The man turned and caught his arm, with strength one wouldn't  
expect out of his frame, kept Victor's arm from moving.  
"Now, now. None of that."  
Victor's one human eye widened, realizing too late what was going to happen. Before he could register it, he was through the wall Grayson himself had just  
been plastered against- his added weight breaking the bricks and landing him in an abandoned warehouse.  
"Raven! Don't just stand there, damn it! Move! We need back up!"  
The man grinned at her, his eyes boring deep into her mind, triggering something primitive.  
Raven was trembling.  
"Raven! Damn it!"  
She had backed herself into the wall she'd been standing in front of, trying, subconsciously, to blend into the scenery.  
"That's a good girl. Stay right there and we'll play once I'm done with him." He motioned to Grayson and turned his attention back to him, showing his teeth.  
He took a few steps towards his opponent, readying another ball of light, but the sound of sirens stopped him. He frowned and closed his fist, the light  
extinguishing itself before turning away. "Until next time." And he was gone.

~X~

The three of them were sitting in Victor's apartment, if it could even be called that. It made Raven's place look like a palace.  
Grayson hadn't been still since they arrived, pacing and swearing for the past ten minutes while Raven stared at her hands and Victor tightened some screws on his arm.

"What the hell happened back there, Raven?"  
She remained silent, staring at her hands and the carpet and her feet. Anywhere but his accusing gaze.  
"You could've gotten us all killed! You just stood there and watched! What were you thinking?"  
"Hey, man. Lay off it. She was scared."  
"Scared? There's no time to be scared in the middle of a fight! The slightest hesitation could cost everyone their lives, and her entire portion of the battle was hesitation!"

"I'm sorry.." She had to whisper it, because other wise her voice would crack and she'd start crying again.  
And Victor's place was enough of a dump already.

"Sorry? That's not enough, Raven! When I asked you to join, I thought you wanted to save this city! And here you are letting them pummel innocent people and your teammates!"  
"In case you hadn't noticed, Dick, I was sort of forced to join this sorry excuse for a team!"  
"Then quit!"  
"Fine!"  
Anger she could deal with. She stood and turned heel storming towards the door. She reached for the handle but hesitated, which seemed to be the theme of the night.  
If she left now, her pride wouldn't let her come back.  
"What are you waiting for?"  
"Nothing." she spat back and turned the handle. But even as she walked down the street back towards her home, she felt like she'd made a mistake.


	7. Chapter 7

Raven spent the entirety of the next day lying in bed. She turned the radio to static to drown out the sounds of traffic and her neighbors and, aside from when she got up to take a (cold) shower early in the morning, didn't move a muscle until dawn the next day. And only then it was because of an insanely loud pounding on her front door. When she finally opened the door, Victor could tell he made a mistake calling on her before the sun was up. Her hair was disheveled and the glare she was shooting him would've made him cry in fear if he were still able to produce tears. And, unless that was a trick of the light, he was pretty sure they had a faint red tint. Oh boy.  
"H-hey, Rae. Can I come in?"  
The glare intensified when he shortened her name, but she stepped aside, letting him hunch through her threshold and into her apartment.  
"What do you want?"  
Victor shifted nervously from one foot to the other, not ashamed at being afraid of this girl, more than a foot shorter than himself, and a quarter his weight.  
"I.. I just wanted to see how you were doing. I mean, when you left the other night, you seemed pretty shaken up. I just..I just wanted to make sure you were okay, I guess."  
"I'm fine."  
Victor watched as she stalked to the kitchen and put a pot of water on the stove, then to the bathroom, coming back out with a brush. She started running it through her hair while she waited for him to continue. The look on her face very clearly saying 'if you're done, I have better things to do.'  
"I mean, if you'd never fought before, I can imagine that it'd be-"  
"Are you done yet?"  
"Look, I'm just trying to be nice, here."  
"I'm done with people 'just trying to be nice'. Nine times out of ten, they just want something from you."  
"Like what, your amazing combat skills?!"  
Everything around them seemed to pause, while Victor mentally kicked himself.  
"I'm sorry- That's.. I didn't mean it like that."  
"Get out."  
"Raven, listen, I'm sorry."  
"I'm not in the mood for your apologies today. I'm not in the mood for anything today. Just get out."  
He turned to leave, placing a scrap of paper down on her rickety end table.  
"My number. In case you need anything." And then he was gone, the door squeaking closed behind him.  
Raven poured her tea and returned to her room, never sparing a glance at the paper, but unable to get it out of her mind.

~X~

She knew she didn't start work for another few days, but she made her way to the bookstore anyway- as she neared it, however, she decided that she didn't want even the company of Alice. She turned down a side street, making her way towards a small, neglected 'park'. It was mostly concrete, with brown patches of grass and dirt scattered about. There were some graffiti covered benches and a tree that no longer produced leaves. The garbage can was overflowing and trash was strewn across the ground every which way.

She sat on one of the benches and looked out at the scene before her- this city used to be vibrant and beautiful- she had seen pictures from decades before the meta-acts. Before the paranoia and fear caused civilians to view all supers as villains- allowing the real villains to take root, regardless of them being meta or human.

And now, here they were- the entire city like this park. Barren and broken down- filthy and wounded, seemingly beyond repair. It made her want to cry and scream at the same time. To shout to the neighborhood- no, the country- that she could be good.  
But what good would that do?  
She noticed, for the first time since her anger surged, the park again. It held the residual emotions of the people who had last been there- fear, anxiety, violence, panic- even the faint traces of a person's final moments. She thought back and remembered the headline- "Man dead in mugging at Brenton Park."

She stood, about to storm away, until she realized something-  
this park was surrounded by apartment buildings. Apartments that housed children and the elderly, single women and newly weds. People already on the down and out, in more danger because of the death trap that they lived near.

And that was how she found her, four hours later, cleaning the park bit by bit. A piece of trash floating, with the aid of a black and white aura, towards a garbage bag. A mostly broken broom sweeping glass and debris of its own volition. A rag and cleanser scrubbing at the benches- one of them already cleaned, it's plaque sparkling and legible, 'donated in memory of Henry Mills- Loving father and spouse- You will be missed.", and a girl, no taller than her shoulders, standing in the middle of it all, orchestrating it like a conductor of a symphony, completely oblivious to the world around her.

"Would you care for some help?"  
The items that had been floating about suddenly fell to the floor as the girl looked up, startled and seemingly about to bolt.  
"No, please! I am the... As you say, grateful! This park has been needing help for many months, and I am most happy that you have done so much! Allow me to aid you in your efforts, please!"  
The girl tilted her head, as if trying to place her accent. She took stock of her appearance and a light clicked.  
"You're a meta."  
"Yes, I believe that I would be classified as such- although technically speaking, I am not a 'Meta-Human', as I am not from this world."  
"You're an alien?"  
"Yes, that is correct. My name is Koriand'r. It is a pleasure to have made your acquaintance, uhm.."  
"Raven."  
"Raven! What a glorious name! Ravens are birds, are they not?"  
"Yes, but..they're not typically considered a bird you would want to be named after."  
"To be named after a bird is a wonderful thing! They are so free in flight! Who would not want that to be their namesake?"  
Raven shifted uncomfortably, looking to change the topic, "What does your name mean?"  
"Koriand'r would mean..." She placed a finger to her mouth thoughtfully, before smiling, "Star and fire!"  
"Starfire...That's a good name.."  
Koriand'r's smile grew sad as she nodded, "Yes, my parents believed so, too."  
"Are they..gone?"  
She waved her hand, smiling and laughing cheerfully again, "Do not worry about me, my parents are alive. Yes, they are just on my home planet of Tameran. What about you?"  
The look on her face told the Alien to drop it- she nodded in understanding and floated over, placing a hand on her new friend's shoulder, "It is okay. You do not have to talk if you do not wish."  
Raven nodded back, a hint of a smile peeking out of her typical impassive scowl.  
"Let us commence with the cleaning!"


	8. Chapter 8

"I will see you soon, yes?"  
"Sure, Koriand'r- Soon."  
"I will stop into the store of books to see you, friend!"  
"Yes, yes... I'll see you then."  
If she'd been anyone else, Raven would've chuckled to herself at the other girl's vitality, but instead she just shook her head and continued walking back down the road.  
About an hour after the other girl started helping, the park was clean.  
Koriand'r was fast, she'd give her that much.  
Raven made it about half a block before stopping short- panic; overwhelming and so strong she could almost taste it- the same feeling from the night in the alley.  
"That was pretty risky of you."  
She put a hand to her chest, trying to center, trying, desperately, to keep her heart from giving out on her.  
"You.."  
"You remember me! And just from the sound of my voice! I'm honored, truly."  
"What do you want?" She tried to sound more confident than she was, but she knew it wasn't fooling him. She knew, without a doubt, that the man speaking to her could, without any effort, rip her to shreds.  
The sick part was, he knew it too. And he enjoyed it.  
"Well, girly, I just stopped by to say 'hi', see how you were." His movement registered in her peripheral vision, skittering off to the distant right until finally coming into focus to her side. "The thing is- your friends there, they think you're a coward. But they don't know the half of it, do they, Raven? Did you tell them what you're running from? Did you tell them why you can't possibly be a hero?"  
She shook her head mutely, hand still clutched to her chest, eyes staring forward, never even flickering to look at him.  
"I didn't think so. You might want to consider cutting ties with them- you know, in the end, you'll be the one they're hunting." He glanced at his watch and made a surprised face, which Raven, even through her own terror, could tell was faked, "Oops. Would you look at the time; I've got to run! You have a good night. Oh, and Raven? I wouldn't leave the house tonight."  
And he was gone.

Even hours after locking her door and curling up in bed she couldn't sleep. The frantic pounding in her chest wouldn't let her.

~X~

"Raven, my dear! Welcome!"  
For the first time since yesterday afternoon, Raven felt something other than fear.  
"Alice, how are you?"  
"I'm fine, just fine. I'm so happy to have you working here! I think I might have gone a little overboard.." She pulled back the curtain separating the employee area from the main store front and Raven gasped with surprise- A banner hung cheerfully from the wall, "Welcome Raven!", the table was covered in confetti and had that largest cake Raven had ever seen before sitting on top of it. There were balloons scattered throughout- Raven nearly started crying. She thought, somewhat wryly, that this woman seemed to have that effect on her.  
"Alice, this is beautiful but I'm sorry to have put you through the trouble.."  
"Hush now, Raven. This is nothing. Besides, my granddaughter made the cake." She looked around conspiratorially, then stage whispered, "it's from a box." Raven laughed in spite of herself, before glancing worriedly at the book that slid off the coffee table. If Alice noticed, she paid it no mind and ushered Raven further into the room.  
"I know it's ten in the morning, but it's never too early for cake, am I right?" She smiled brightly and Raven's heart skipped a beat. This woman was exactly what she had always imagined a grandmother to be like. She bit down melancholy and smiled a little in response.  
"I've heard that's the case. I don't eat cake very often, so it's pretty exciting."  
This time, Alice was the one to laugh, "I should eat cake less often. Hopefully with you here I won't feel obligated to finish the whole thing." She made her way towards the confection and cut Raven a slice large enough to make up her total calorie count for the week. She then cut herself a slab and brought them to the table, where a pitcher of milk and some glasses were already waiting for them. Raven sat and waited for Alice to start eating her slice before taking a bite of her own.  
"Goddess, that is good."  
"I know- my Sarah has a knack for baking. I'll tell her you approve."  
Raven quickly downed the slice she'd been given and two glasses of milk. Upon a polite but firm reminder from Alice, she cut herself a second slice. It was gone only slightly slower.  
"You wouldn't think it from looking at you, but you have a sweet tooth."  
"I never really knew. I don't have the money to spend on sweets and I never had the opportunity to try them when I was young."  
"We'll fix that. I'm always buying snacks for the store. I tell myself it's for the customers, but of course it never makes it that far." Raven smiled indulgently, but secretly wondered about the other woman's sugar intake.  
"Do you know how to use a cash register?"  
"The basics, yes."  
"And of course you know the alphabet. I'll show you how to place orders later, but the store mostly runs itself."

Raven nodded, scooping the remaining crumbs off the plate onto her fork and into her mouth. Box or not, that was the best meal Raven could ever remember having.  
"You get a forty percent discount, anything in the store. And don't be shy about ordering books you think will sell."  
A crashing sound could be heard from outside and Raven instinctively jumped, dropping her paper plate in the process. An end table suddenly decided to give up on life, and toppled to it's side. Alice looked in the general direction that the noise came from, a sad look on her face.  
"This used to be such a nice area.. Now, crime is everywhere in this city. It's becoming as bad as Gotham used to be."  
Raven remained silent, bending forward slightly to pick up her plate and place it on the coffee table.  
"It's a shame there isn't a way to fight back."  
Raven stood and righted the end table- it hadn't been damaged in her negligence, just knocked aside.  
"Maybe one day we'll be able to reclaim this city, eh, Raven?"  
Staring at the wall that the crash had been behind, Raven nodded once. "Maybe."

~X~

"Maybe you should apologize to her."  
"Me? Apologize? _She's_ the one in the wrong."  
"If you want to lead a group, you have to realize that everyone has different abilities. This Raven of yours might have never fought before in her life. But more than that, everyone has different emotional needs. If she's half as stubborn and prideful as you, you're going to need to grovel a bit to get her back.""Then I'll find someone else."  
"Robin. Don't be arrogant. To lead means, occasionally, to give in for the benefit of the group. This is one of those times."  
"Fine." Dick answered and cut the video feed sharply.  
If that's what it took, then he'd be the most apologetic guy on the planet. But he sure as hell wasn't going to like it.


End file.
